AUSTINTOWN — One of the few bright spots for families and businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic is outdoor activity as the weather warms.

Bicycling, for example, has weathered the pandemic and brought some families closer. One place they’re checking out is Mill Creek MetroParks’ recently opened bike tunnel along the park’s bike trail — cut directly under Interstate 76.

The almost 300-foot, illuminated tunnel is a bright spot along the trail, and since last fall has offered recreational relief .

“This is great,” Columbiana resident Karen Pierson said of the trail. “The tunnel is an added bonus. It’s something different and makes it interesting.”

Alongside Pierson was her friend and former classmate Tracy Higgins. Higgins agreed the trail is a nice way to get outdoors.

Addition of the tunnel stems from repairs done to the Ohio Turnpike above it.

In the tunnel’s place previously was a bridge that was removed. Turnpike representative Brian Newbacher said removing the bridge cost $400,000.

The tunnel structure cost $2 million and paving costs totaled $345,000. The change from a bridge to the tunnel should mean less maintenance in the future on the structure, officials said previously.

LOVING IT

Some on the trail said the addition of the tunnel was more than needed.

Matt, biking with his son and 12-year-old Jacob Kuhns, frequently takes to the trail. He said the area was more difficult to navigate before the tunnel.

“The tunnel’s great. Prior to the tunnel being here, it was horrible going through the detour and up the hill. This is very nice, and it feels a lot safer too,” Matt Kuhns said.

Jacob said the tunnel is a welcomed addition on the trail.

“It’s great because we don’t get to do many things,” Jacob Kuhns said. “We rarely get to do anything and go out and hang out because so many places are shut down. This is just a great place to be social distanced, hang out and get some exercise as well.”

The tunnel and trail have been heavily used by those seeking some fresh air, according to Tim Knight, owner of the bicycle rental store at the Kirk Road trailhead. “Everyone wants to be outside,” he said.

BUSY TRAIL

Knight, who opened the shop a couple of months before the tunnel was complete, said the amount of traffic the trail gets is incredible. He noted the limited recreational options during the pandemic have helped to keep the trail busy.

“You start to see a lot more kids outside. Before, kids wanted to play on their phones, but now, if mom and dad are out, the kids come out too,” Knight said. “People are starting to realize we have a lot of cool places to ride (bicycles). It’s great.”

The Orlovsky family, from Canfield, 12-year-old Owen, 15-year-old Grayson and their mother, Kim, said they use the bike trail daily — and did so even before the tunnel was built. Kim believes the boom in families riding bicycles is related to the pandemic.

“You couldn’t go elsewhere. You were forced to do something outside,” she said. “You couldn’t go to movie theaters, you couldn’t go to bowling alleys, you couldn’t do a lot of things inside, so that really opened up the outside. For us, we’re just fortunate that (the trail) is in our backyard. I think a lot of people turned to that, even on holiday weekends. You couldn’t get together with family or friends, but you could get on the bike trail.”

‘REALLY COOL’

Both Owen and Grayson call the tunnel “really cool.”

Knight noted a huge jump in people renting bikes, as well as people “digging out their old bikes and wanting them refurbished or tuned up.” Bicycle sales have soared, but the demand has been so great that most distributors are out, he said.

“You can’t buy new bikes. I sell new ones, but you can’t even get them. (Distributors) are talking about being out until 2022,” Knight said. “If you sold bikes and kayaks, you’d be a millionaire. It’s crazy.”

nhawthorne@tribtoday.com